Saints Who Were Mothers: St Martha
Jul 4th, 2008 by michelle
St Martha the Mother of St. Simeon the Stylite- Commemorated on July 4
Saint Martha lived in Cilicia of Asia Minor during the fourth and fifth centuries and came from a poor family. She and her husband, Sisotion, were the parents of St. Simeon the Stylite.
At the age of eighteen, Simeon received the monastic tonsure without his parents’ knowledge. Many years later, Martha came to the saint’s pillar in order to see him. Simeon sent word to her not to come, for if they were worthy, the two of them would meet again in the life to come. Martha insisted on seeing him, so had someone tell her to wait for him in silence. St. Martha agreed, and waited at the foot of the hill where her son’s pillar stood. There she fell asleep in the Lord.
When he heard that his mother had died, St. Simeon ordered that her body be brought to the foot of his pillar. He prayed over his mother’s body for some time shedding many tears, and witnesses said that a smile appeared on St. Martha’s
